Increased marijuana use reflects changing attitudes

More adults are using marijuana than ever before, but the trend is not the result of the growing number of state laws that allow legal use of recreational or medical marijuana.

Instead of being caused by policy changes, researchers at the Public Health Institute’s Alcohol Research Group found that, “the passage of these policies reflects changing attitudes toward marijuana use, rather than the other way around.”

Overall, 12.9 percent of adults have used marijuana in 2015, up from the 6.7 percent 10 years earlier, the study revealed. The study also showed that people aged 50 to 59 are especially avid marijuana users. Women users represented a staggering 7,200 percent increase.

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